1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of food additives in the form of products which contain extracts of fruits having enlarged concentrations of naturally occurring phenolics. More particularly the present invention is in the field of products and additives to foods which products contain extracts of apples having enlarged concentrations of phenolics. The present invention also relates to the process of obtaining products used as food additives having enlarged concentrations of phenolics, the process involving extraction of phenolics from fruits, particularly from apples.
2. Brief Description of Background Art
It has been known in the prior art that certain compounds or ingredients, present in fruits, particularly in grapes and apples, possess various benefits for human health apart from the well known benefits of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients considered to be the main ingredients of fruits. The terms xe2x80x9cphenolicsxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cplant phenolicsxe2x80x9d have been developed and been adopted in the art for a class or type of these compounds because these compounds include in their formula a hydroxyl (OH) function attached to an aromatic carbon atom in analogy to the well known chemical phenol, or these compounds have a chemical structure closely related to or derived from a compound having an aromatic (phenolic) hydroxyl group. Usually plant phenolics have more than one aromatic (phenolic) hydroxyl group. Generally speaking, plant phenolics have antioxidant properties and have been shown in in vitro and in in vivo studies to have positive effects on the human cardio-thoracic condition. The phenolics isolated from fruits, primarily from apples, include gallic acid, flavan-3ols, flavonols, phloridzin, cinnamates, hydroxymethyl furfural and anthocyanins. A publication titled xe2x80x9cVINOX(trademark) (Grape Seed Extract) Technical Publication Ixe2x80x9d by Polyphenolics, Inc. Burlingame Calif., describes the health benefits obtained as a result of consumption of phenolics and related compounds found in grapes and wine (particularly red wine), and identifies by chemical structure several phenolic compounds found in grape seeds. Apples are a rich and well known source for phenolics, and the phenolics are primarily concentrated in the peel. A publication by Pearson et al. titled xe2x80x9cApple Juice Inhibits Human Low density Lipoprotein Oxidationxe2x80x9d, in Life Sciences 1999 Volume 64, No. 21 pp 1913-1920, describes human health benefits provided by the consumption of phenolics in apple juice.
Because of the richness of apples as a source of plant-phenolics and because of the availability of apple peel and core as a relatively economical raw material, efforts in accordance with the present invention to produce isolates containing high concentration of phenolics have been focused on apple peel and apple core serving as a source.
It is an object of the present invention to obtain from fruits, and particularly from apples, an extract which is rich in natural phenolics of the fruit and which is utilized as a supplement or additive in various food products.
It is another object of the present invention to obtain from fruits, and particularly from apples, an extract which is rich in natural phenolics of the fruit and which does not impart an unnatural or undesired taste component to the food product in which it is used.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide food products such as beverages, dairy products, frozen products, jams, jellies, preserves, and confectionary products which have an enlarged concentration of phenolics that have been extracted from fruits, particularly from apples, in accordance with the present invention.
The foregoing objects and advantages are attained by a product or products that is obtained first by extracting fruit with an organic solvent such as ethyl alcohol, ethyl acetate or like solvent that is compatible with use in the food processing industry. The extract of the fruit in the organic solvent is thereafter processed by removing the bulk of the solvent by distillation or evaporation to obtain in the residue of the distillation a concentrated extract which contains water and some residual organic solvent. The concentrated extract is thereafter separated into water soluble and water insoluble products in process steps, which include filtration of solid material that precipitates out from the liquid residue, and re-dissolution in water of the water soluble portion of the solid material that had been obtained by filtration of the residue. After solids have been removed by filtration, the liquid concentrate is optionally mixed with a nutritionally acceptable carrier, such as maltodextrin, rice dextrin, modified corn starch or other carrier, and the residual organic solvent is substantially completely removed by spray drying or like drying process effective to yield a solid product. The liquid concentrates, the dried solid products and solutions of the dried solid product which may be obtained by redissolving the dried solid products, contain high concentrations of phenolics. When in a liquid form the concentration of phenolics is at least approximately 1000 mg Gallic Acid Equivalents (GAE) per liter. When in a solid form, such as the spray dried product obtained from the liquid concentrate, the concentration of phenolics depends on the amount of carrier or carriers added and on the moisture content of the solid. Preferably the spray dried solid product contains at least approximately 10 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) per gram of solid.
The liquid concentrate, dried solid product or their solutions can be added to diverse types of food products, such as beverages, dairy products, frozen products, jams, jellies, preserves, and confectionary products to provide or enrich the products with fruit phenolics.
The features of the present invention can be best understood together with further objects and advantages by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.